Legendary former FAMU nursing dean dies

M. Elizabeth Carnegie, 91, a ground-breaking nurse and educator who championed the cause of African American nurses, died of hypertensive cardiovascular disease Feb. 20 at her home in Chevy Chase, MD. Carnegie served as professor and dean of FAMU's School of Nursing from 1945 to 1953 .

At a time when black nurses at some hospitals were not allowed to identify themselves as "Miss," only "Nurse," Dr. Carnegie insisted on the proper honorific. She refused to ride in hotel freight elevators while attending state nursing meetings in Florida and broke the color barrier as the first black nurse appointed to the board of the Florida Nurses Association. Her academic colleagues so feared for her safety that they prayed for her return every time she went on the road.

The appointment had its drawbacks; she was told she could not speak or vote at its meetings. She refused the honor until 1949, when she was officially elected as a legitimate, not just courtesy, member of the board.

Continue reading: Carnegie was a pioneer and advocate for Black nurses